As Much as I Loathe Trump, I Cannot Be Part of the 50501 Movement as Long as it Tolerates Anti-Semitism

 

In Boston, there were two 50501 No King events today.

The reason for this was because was Boston's annual Pride parade was scheduled for today and 50501 was incorporated into it. There was also a smaller 50501 gathering in Brookline at Coolidge Corner (pictured above).

I made a point of attending both events beginning with the gathering at Brookline. It was a low-key affair with protesters on all four corners carrying signs. I did not have a sign and felt a bit out of place. However, whatever discomfort I felt in Brookline paled in comparison to what I saw and heard when I made my way to Boston Common.

I wasn't there more than 5 minutes when I heard a young man shout at the top of his lungs:

FUCK ISRAEL!!! I HATE JEWS!!! FREE PALESTINE!!!

The young man's declaration was met with approval.

I got the hell out of there, but not before I saw several Palestinian flags.

I oppose President Trump's policies, his embrace of authoritarianism and his cult of personality megalomania now culminating in a military parade in his honor. 

But I cannot be part of a movement which tolerates anti-Semitism. 

I cannot be part of a movement who wishes grievous harm to me and the Jewish community.

I cannot be part of a movement which condones the events of October 7th.

Nor I can be a part of a movement which seeks the annihilation of Israel and the Jewish people. 

I understand that not everyone who supports 50501 supports the views of this unhinged young man.

But a critical mass within the movement certainly does.

Complicating this dynamic is the Pride parade. A year ago, I saw an anti-Semitic sign at the parade which read, "No Cops and Zionists at Pride". 

Now it has become worse, and I suspect it will continue to get far worse.

How is it that a significant portion of the LGBTQ community openly embrace the Palestinians when Hamas torture and kills LGBTQ people?

Well, hate is irrational. And that unhinged young man used the word "hate" without hesitation.

Dare I say, he used that word with pride.

For a LGBTQ movement which preaches tolerance, it is astonishing that some within that movement are every bit as capable of expressing hate as those who hate them.

At the very minimum, Jews are being told that we are not welcome. Mind you, this doesn't deter me from continuing to oppose Trump. But it does deter me from getting too close to others who oppose him. 

As such, it is best that I express my personal opposition to Trump in my own way and from a distance.

What Will Happen Between Israel & Iran?

After years of putting up with Iran's nuclear buildup, its intransigence with the international community and its repeated threats to annihilate the Jewish state, Israel decided enough was enough and this morning began taking out the Islamic Republic's nuclear program as well as its key political, military and scientific leaders

The question, of course, is what will come of it.

The best-case scenario is Israel render Iran's nuclear program obsolete, and the Iranians overthrow the mullahs in favor of democratic governance and the two countries become allies.

Naturally, this outcome is far from guaranteed. 

There is President Trump's mercurial disposition. The Iranian regime may signal to Trump that it is ready to accept any deal his administration offers. Such a scenario would be too much for Trump to refuse. It would mean Trump would put the kibosh on Israel's military campaign, the Iranian regime would remain in place, and he would take credit for the deal. Indeed, Trump is offering Iran "a second chance" and I think there's a very good chance this comes to pass. 

Mind you, this would merely invite Iran to start its nuclear program anew but Trump nor his newfound friends within the Obama Administration wouldn't care. That would be someone else's problem. But it would remain Israel's problem. 

Let us also consider the possibility that Iran sheds its Islamic regime of more than 45 years. But instead of being replaced by democracy, it is replaced by, yet another strain of Islamic fundamentalism be it Shiite or Sunni in origin which is even more determined to wipe out Israel. Or at the very least one could certainly see the sort of years long insurgency which came to pass after U.S. and coalition forces disposed of Saddam Hussein in Iraq in 2003. 

Under the circumstances, it is a risk Israel has to be prepared to take. The status quo is simply unsustainable. Aside from Iran's nuclear ambitions, there is its sponsorship of terrorism through both Hamas and Hezbollah and against Jewish institutions outside of the Middle East such as the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center in Buenos Aires, Argentina which claimed the lives of 85 people. 

In taking this risk, Israel knew it would face retaliation as has occurred with missile strikes in Tel Aviv although no fatalities have been reported as of this writing. Chances are this will change. 

In which case, it is a cost Israel must bear. Then again this is far from the first time Israel and the Jewish people have borne the cost and it will be far from the last. One can only hope the outcome is worth the price.

What Happened to Senator Padilla is a Microcosm of Trump Admin's Heavy Handedness in L.A.

I saw the video of California Senator Alex Padilla being forcibly removed from a briefing held by DHS Secretary Kristi Noem after he attempted to ask her a question.

From where I sit, the video is a microcosm of how the Trump Administration has been handling the situation in Los Angeles. 

Yes, there has been some violence in reaction to ICE detaining migrants working at retail outlets throughout the city. But the notion what is happening in L.A. is tantamount to an insurrection warranting intervention by the National Guard and the U.S. Marines is sheer rubbish. This is a crisis created almost entirely by the Trump Administration.

The same holds true for Padilla's treatment today. One can reasonably argue that Padilla could have used other tactics. But the notion that Padilla's intervention warranted him being thrown to the ground and placed into handcuffs by FBI and Secret Service agents made them look like goons and hooligans. 

With that said, just before Padilla interrupted the proceedings, Noem was talking batshit crazy:

We are not going away. We are here to liberate this city from the socialist and the burdensome leadership that this Governor and this Mayor have placed on this country and what they have tried to insert into this city.

Liberate this city from the socialist and the burdensome leadership?

Does this liberation consist of arbitrarily jailing Governor Newsom and Mayor Karen Bass and installing a puppet regime? And what exactly have they inserted into Los Angeles? Most of the people ICE is detaining have lived and worked in L.A. for decades.

In view of Noem's remarks, one could argue the old adage, "Never interrupt your enemy when they are making a mistake."

Then again, methinks tackling and handcuffing a United States Senator trying to ask a question is a pretty big mistake. After all, Padilla was neither arrested nor charged which indicates the FBI and Secret Service know they fucked up. 

On the other hand, there is significant portion of this country which delighted in seeing Padilla physically manhandled and wish worse was done to him. 

While perhaps Padilla's position as a Senator spared him from worse treatment, the rest of us who see fit to disagree with the Trump Administration or dare to ask questions might not be so lucky.

Musk is Nothing More Than Trump's Man Servant

(Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images)

I did not buy into the notion that President Trump and Elon Musk were feuding. And even if they were, I predicted the "feud" would be short-lived:

Trump and Musk can disavow each other all they want. They worked together to harm this country.

And they could always work together again.

Before Musk left the White House, let's remember that Trump declared "he's not really leaving" and that he will be "back and forth" to the Oval Office.

I believe Trump and Musk will kiss and make up. Perhaps even by next week.

Should this come to pass, it will be yet another blip in the second Trump presidency. 

Before you know it, there will be a third Trump presidency, Constitution or no Constitution.

Well, less than a week later, Trump and Musk didn't exactly kiss and make up. Rather, Musk waved the white flag: 

I regret some of my posts about President @realDonaldTrump last week. They went too far.

Presumably this would include the posts about Trump being in the Epstein files and subsequently calling for his impeachment. 

Musk has tried getting back into Trump's good graces by backing his denunciation of California Governor Gavin Newsom and L.A. Mayor Karen Bass amid the demonstrations against ICE. 

Trump is open to a rapprochement with Musk, but I think Musk will have to do more groveling.  

In order to be Trump's favor, Musk will need to accept that he is Trump's man servant available at his beck and call. A billionaire man servant perhaps. But a man servant just the same.

This is a consequence of aligning oneself with Trump. It doesn't matter how much money you have. If you lose your dignity, no amount of money can buy it back. 

Greta Thunberg Refuses to Watch Footage of Hamas Killing Jews on October 7th

Over the past 20 months, Greta Thunberg has transitioned from an environmental activist to an apologist for Hamas. 

Thunberg led a flotilla with the intention of delivering aid to Gaza which would have invariably ended up in the hands of Hamas. The IDF instead intercepted the flotilla prompting hysterical, nonsensical claims by Thunberg she had been "kidnapped" Funny, while Hamas starves its captives, the IDF offered Thunberg a chicken sandwich which she appeared all too willing to eat. 

If Thunberg wants to hear from people who have actually been kidnapped, she should speak with surviving hostages and their families and the families of hostages still in captivity, many of whom are dead.

But Thunberg isn't interested in speaking with surviving Israeli hostages nor the families of those hostages still being held by Hamas. After Thunberg and her group were intercepted, they were shown a film taken on October 7th which documented Hamas' acts of murder and mayhem. Or at least the Israelis tried. Thunberg had no interest in watching the film. As Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz stated:

Greta and her flotilla companions were taken into a room upon their arrival for a screening of the horror film of the October 7 massacre, and when they saw what it was about, they refused to continue watching.

The antisemitic flotilla members are turning a blind eye to the truth and have proven once again that they prefer the murderers to the murdered and continue to ignore the atrocities committed by Hamas against Jewish and Israeli women, adults, and children.

That Thunberg would claim to having been kidnapped while refusing to acknowledge Hamas actions is a slap in the face to every hostage, living and dead, and their families. 

It's probably just as well. Her hatred of Jews is so deeply entrenched that an effort to show her the truth of the evil Hamas committed on October 7th is wasted on her and her not-so-merry band of anti-Semitic apologists.

Some Thoughts on the Run for Their Lives Vigil in Newton, MA

 

In response to the terrorist attack one week ago today in Boulder, Colorado against the group Run for Their Lives which injured a dozen people, I attended a Run for Their Lives vigil in Newton, Massachusetts this morning which was attended by about 100 people.

The vigil included remarks by Democratic Congressman Jake Auchincloss, Newton Mayor Ruthanne Fuller and special guest Yonatan Reguer, an Israeli journalist and TV host. 

Auchincloss' remarks were well received as he pointedly condemned both sides of the political spectrum for tolerating anti-Semitism. He also made a point of saying that it is easy for him to condemn Trump and his allies' anti-Semitic misdeeds, but that he was equally obliged to condemn the anti-Semitism of groups aligned with the Democratic Party such as the Democratic Socialists of America whose various factions have condoned Hamas' attack on Israel as well as last month's shooting at the Capital Jewish Museum which killed two Israeli Embassy staffers. Auchincloss further noted that we all know full well that those who claim to be anti-Zionist are also anti-Semitic.

However, Fuller drew the ire of many in the crowd when she stated that anti-Semitism shouldn't be weaponized to target institutions of higher learning. The crowd shouted her down yelling, "No politics" and "Bring Them Home!!!" I share some of Fuller's sentiments as Trump's measures against Harvard University as they have little to do with combating anti-Semitism. 

However, this weekly event is a vigil to keep the public aware of the 55 hostages, living and dead, still held by Hamas as well as to express solidarity and sorrow for what happened a week ago in Boulder. The merits of Trump's policies against Harvard and other institutions of higher learning are a different conversation for a different day.

Reguer spoke of the families of the hostages he has interviewed and showed some excerpts from his documentaries of the families he has interviewed. He recounted the story of how the mother of former hostage Omer Shem Tov kept his bedroom untouched including leaving the light on until he returned home as a way of keeping him alive. Last month, Tov threw out the first pitch at Fenway Park during Jewish Heritage Night.

The proceedings concluded with a reading of the hostages who are still believed to be alive along with the singing of "Aleinu". "Hatikvah" (the Israeli national anthem) and the "Star Spangled Banner". As was pointed, the pro-Intifada gatherings on campuses and elsewhere hate America as much as they hate Israel and that one will never see an American flag at their gatherings. 

On a personal note, I have to admit I didn't use my best judgment. I did not eat prior to leaving the apartment but brought along some lox for the train ride to Newton. I also carried a pair of scissors to open the package. 

Alas, the security personnel were not amused with the fact that I was carrying scissors. When I was asked why I had brought along the scissors, I produced the empty package of lox. I'm lucky I didn't throw it out because I could have possibly got into a lot of trouble. Nevertheless, my scissors were confiscated, and I had to buy a new pair when after leaving the event. 

Given what happened in Boulder, I understand that every precaution must be taken. But in so doing, I didn't exactly feel very welcome there. Between that and the heckling directed Mayor Fuller, the atmosphere at this gathering was quite tense. 

Frankly, I don't think I will be back. It doesn't mean I don't want the hostages to be freed. What it does mean is that I am better suited to make those thoughts known by other means such as this post. 

Joan Osborne Has a Doctorate in Dylanology

(From left to right: Cindy Cashdollar, Will Bryant, Joan Osborne, Lee Falco & Gail Ann Dorsey)

When I spoke to Joan Osborne in March 2024 following her performance at City Winery in Boston, I told her it was the first time I had seen and heard her in concert since September 2000. 

To which she replied, "Well, don't make it another 24 years before you see me in concert."

Well, this time around it was only 15 months between concerts. On Saturday night, my friend Don Hammontree and I attended a concert at the Cabot Theatre in Beverly, Massachusetts featuring Joan Osborne covering a selection of Bob Dylan songs billed under the theme of Dylanology. 

I dare say that Osborne can be said to have a doctorate in Dylanology. Osborne covered Dylan's "The Man in the Long Black Coat" from his 1989 album Oh Mercy on her 1995 breakout album Relish. In 2017, Osborne recorded an album of Dylan covers called Songs of Bob Dylan and has now returned to Dylan with the release of her new live album Dylanology Live which was originally recorded in 2018.

Accompanying Osborne this evening was pedal steel guitarist Cindy Cashdollar, Will Bryant on keyboards, Anders Osborne on lead guitar (no relation - at least one they are aware of), Lee Falco on drums and Gail Ann Dorsey on bass. This, of course, is the same Gail Ann Dorsey who spent many years touring with David Bowie and is a longtime friend of Fanny. 

What was most remarkable about the proceedings was how much Osborne gave the spotlight to her bandmates. Dorsey and Bryant did a duet of "Shelter from the Storm" from Blood on the Tracks while later in the evening Dorsey covered "Lay Lady Lay" from the Nashville Skyline album. Falco sang lead vocal on "When I Paint My Masterpiece" from Greatest Hits, Volume II and then later in the evening took the stage alone to sing "Song for Woody" from Dylan's 1962 eponymous debut album.

For his part, Anders Osborne sang lead on four songs - "Man in Me", "Maggie's Farm", "Mozambique" and "Isis". The first song is from Dylan's 1970 album New Morning and would later be featured in the Coen Brothers film The Big Lebowski. "Maggie's Farm" appeared on Dylan's 1965 album Bringing It All Back Home while "Mozambique" and "Isis" both appeared on Dylan's 1976 album Desire. I remember Desire being regularly played in my early childhood along Blood on the Tracks and Nashville Skyline. Hearing "Mozambique" and "Isis" simultaneously took me back in time while hearing something altogether new.

Although Cindy Cashdollar did not sing, she sure made her pedal steel guitar, slide guitar and dobro sing. She would be most prominent on "Tryin' to Get to Heaven" from Dylan's 1997 Grammy winning album Time Out of Mind which was also produced by Daniel Lanois. Indeed, Cashdollar played slide guitar on the original recording of "Tryin' to Get to Heaven".

But make no mistake. This collaboration was Joan Osborne's creation. For her, it was the Daniel Lanois produced Oh Mercy which connected her to Dylan through her covers of both "Man in The Long Black Coat" and "Shooting Star" resulting in her most impassioned performances of the evening. Her voice imbues the spirit of Dylan's words and phrasing. She is not merely covering the tune, but she is taking up residence in his words. 

Osborne also made it clear that this evening was not about her. Prior to the encore, a number of fans were clamoring for her to play "St. Theresa" from Relish. Although appreciative of the request, Osborne made it clear that tonight was about Bob Dylan.

However, Osborne noted that with this year being the 30th anniversary of Relish that she planned to be up in this area later this year for another show devoted to commemorating that album. In which case, it might be only a matter of months before I see and hear Joan Osborne again.